GARDEN CITY, N.Y. (Dec. 11, 2022) – The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy wrestling team had a great day at the Nassau Open, hosted by nearby Nassau Community College on Sunday, as three Mariners won their brackets and two others finished in third place.
 
Freshman Wesley Wydick (Utica, Ohio) came out on top of the 133-pound bracket, while senior James Cruz (Belleville, N.J.) won at 197 and sophomore Reid Garrison (Broadway, Va.) took the top spot in the heavyweight bracket.
 
Two Mariners came in third place in their respective brackets – freshman Ivan Corral (Oak Forest, Ill.) at 165 and sophomore Zachery Fultz (Silver Spring, Md.) at 197.
 
Meet Links

• Complete Results
• USMMA Only Results (PDF) 

Wydick finished the day with a 3-0 record. He recorded a medical forfeit win in his opening, quarterfinal match, followed by a major decision victory over East Stroudsburg's Kelvin Rodriquez-Molina in the semis that put the plebe into the first place match. There he defeated Springfield Tech Community College's Matthew Clayton by way of a pin at 2:27.
 
It was a perfect 4-0 record for Cruz, who earned an opening round win over Kody Edwards of East Stroudsburg by pin in less than a minute. Up next were back-to-back victories for the senior via technical falls over the host Lions' Isaiah Lee (15-0) and Division I wrestler John Dusza of LIU (16-0). In the first place match, Cruz narrowly defeated another DI wrestler Nikolas Miller of Hofstra with a 10-7 decision to claim the bracket's top spot.
 
Like Wydick, Garrison went 3-0 on the afternoon. The sophomore triumphed in the quarterfinals by way of a 15-0 tech. fall over Angel Santiago Camden County College and took down Nassau Community College's Jacob Maiorano with a pin at 2:10 in the semifinals. Garrison won the bracket after SUNY Sullivan's Ryan Ellefsen was forced out of the first place match with an injury.
 
Both Corral and Fultz finished with identical 5-1 records to finish in third place in their brackets. Corral recorded three pins, a tech. fall and a major decision on the day, while Fultz also had three falls to go along with a major decision. One of Fultz's wins was pins was against a DI wrestler from LIU in the semifinals.
 
The Mariners won't be back in action until the New Year, when they travel to Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pa. to take part in the 2023 Manganaro Duals. Action begins at 10 a.m. at the Bears' Floy Lewis Bakes Center. Any live links for the meet will be posted on the USMMA Wrestling Schedule Page prior to action getting underway.
 
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